Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1887-09-16
THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION
A short History OF Interest Just at
Present.
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Present.
PHsbarg Post.
The failure Of the impost an endment to
the articles of confederation, by which it
was sought to provide Congress with fixed
and ample revenues, and the Shsp rebell-
ion in Massachusetts,, By which the power
of Congress was clearly shown to be weak
were probably the two events which de-
eided the leaders of public opinion to seek
a more perfect union. Upon the invitation
of Virginia, twelve delegates from v
States, namely, New York, New Jersey,
Delaware, Pennsylvania and Virginia, met
in September, 1856, at Annapolis, and,
not having power To do otherwise, dis
cussed for four DAYS the necessity oil
strengthening the government. In aceord-
ance with q recommendation by this
meeting, which was approved by
Congress in February, 1857, the
constitutional convention met In Phil
sdelphia on May ii, 1871, but was not or
ganized until May %, u the result oil
the debates lasting four months the Con
%stitutlon was created. Delegates were
present from all the thirteen States except
Rhode Island, and among them were Ru-
fus King, El5ridge Gerry, of Massachu-
sets: Roger Sherman, Oliver Ellsworth,
Of Connecticut; Alexander Hamilton,
Robert Yates, of New York; William
Livingston, William Peterson, of New
Jersey: George Read, Richard Barrett, OF
Delaware: Benjamin Frank n, Robert
Norris, Gouverneur Morris, Thomas Milf
film. Of Pennsylvania; James McHenry,
DIpiel Carroll, Luther Martin, OF Mary
land: James Madison, Edmund Randolph,
George Mason, George Wythe, OF Virginia;
John Rutledge, Charles Pinkney, OF South
Carolina; Alexander Martin, Hugh Will
hanson, of North Carolina; John Lang
ION. of New Hampshire, and Abraham
Baldwin, Of Georgia. The sessions of the
convention were private, and the details Of
the proceedings ore to be gathered from
the letters of individuals like Yates, Of
New York, and Martin, Of Maryland. and
the painstakiDg work OF Madison. George
Washington, who nearly four years before
had resigned his commission as COM
m~ander-in-chief of the American army
and had retired to private life, was again
called to the front in the service OF his
country and presided over the convention.
The two plans for a union-the Virginia
plan, proposed by Randolph, and the New
Jersey plan, proposed by PatterSon-were
debated for a month. The latter, giving
toe same power in Congress to small
States and large, was rejected on June ~,
and after long discussion of the Virginia
plan it Was, with some important modl-
~ications, and after several compromises,
made the basis of the new cOnSti-
tuition. Pinckney, of South Carolina,
and Hamilton, of New York, also pre-
sented plans of their OWL A study OF
Madison's writings will give u a fair
idea of what the different plans proposed
and the reading of the constitution will
show the result OF the debates. On Sep.
tember l., 1877. 80 of the delegates signed
the constitution aud Is did not. On Sep
TENDER % congress resolved TO submit the
constitution to the several States. II was
ratified by Delaware December I, 1877;
PENNSYLVANIA, December Il, 1877; New
Jersey, December Is, 1871; Georgia, JAN
nary ,, 1913; Connecticut, January 3,
i1SS: Massachusetts,, February Is, l7SS;
Maryland. April -, 1873; South Carolina,
May %, l7s2; New Hampshire, June 2l,
1873; Virginia, June %, 1883. New York,
July 26, 1888; North Carolina, November
.2I, 17S9, and Rhode Island, May %, 1890.
The constitution was by resolution CT con-
gress declared to be ratified September Is,
.lTSS.
The constitution became practically
operative" March /. 1889. The Supreme
Court was called upon to pass on this
question. lOwipgs vs.. Speed, 5 Wheaton,
100 and it decided that while the Consti-
tuition was adopted September Il, 1877,
aud was ratified by a sufficient number 81
States June y, l7SS, yet these acts were
only preliminary and preparatory to the
creation OF q government whose effective
operation under the constitution began
ONLY with the date set for its organization
April 80, 1879. General Washington was
inaugurated as the first President, and the
government, which went into effect March
!, Or nearly two months before, WIS set in
motion with two of It's departments, execu-
tive and legislative, complete. The Judlcl-
ary was not organized until after the ap-
proveI Of the act of September 81, 1850,
creating the Supreme Court.